February 20, Pozirk. Belarus is open to cooperation with Warsaw, Maj. Gen. Valeryj Ravienka of the defense ministry’s international department has told journalists from the state-run media outlets.
“We are taking steps to establish dialogue and consensus to resolve all pressing issues near our borders,” Ravienka said, citing a recent notification under the Vienna Document of Minsk’s readiness to hold events on regional confidence- and security-building measures.
Belarus would design its defense strategy based on Warsaw’s response regarding the planned events, Ravienka claimed, noting a major geopolitical shift following a change in the US policy under the Donald Trump administration.
Minsk welcomes efforts to negotiate peace in Ukraine, yet is less optimistic about current developments in Europe, he added.
He alluded to Poland’s mistrust for its eastern neighbor, citing the opening of a NATO missile defense base last year and the expansion of Polish armed forces. However, Minsk is ready for “a negotiation processes,” visits to military units, information exchange and reciprocal inspections both in Belarus and Poland up to 80 kilometers deep from the shared border, he stressed.
This would enable Belarus to ascertain Poland’s peaceful aspirations, find compromises, establish good neighborly relations and make sure that Poland does not build up forces for an attack on the Union State of Belarus and Russia, Ravienka said.
If Warsaw refuses to engage, Belarus will design its military and other policies “based on this result,” he warned.
The Vienna Document, to which Belarus is a party, requires the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) member states to exchange information on their armed forces, weapons and defense planning, among other things.
In 2022, Minsk made a presumably false claim that the Belarusian-Russian “Union Resolve” exercise, held from February 10 to 20 in Belarus, involved less than 13,000 troops. Four days after its conclusion, a 20,000-strong Russian force attacked Ukraine from Belarus, Alaksandar Łukašenka revealed. Ukrainian sources said that a 70,000-strong Russian contingent attacked Ukraine from Belarus.
Belarus limited contacts with European countries under the Vienna Document after the 2020 disputed presidential election and suspended cooperation after the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which was backed by authorities in Minsk.
Since 2020, Minsk reported only one verification event in Belarus under the Vienna Document—Serbian officers inspected the Brest-based 38th Detached Guards Air Assault Brigade in June 2024.
Also read: Belarusian unit inspected by foreigners first time in four years
